Black Taffeta Glam

Just a quick post to show off my fabric for the vintage dress. Black taffeta may sound a bit... well, boring? Predictable? Hear me out.

I've had this long, taffeta skirt in my possession for a long time. How it got there is a bit of a mystery. I thought my mom had made it, but after questioning her, she thinks perhaps one of her friends did. Anyway, not sure why I have it, but it has been hanging around for at least 15 or 20 years. Egads! I've never worn it. It has a bit of an Amish/wicked witch feel to me. And then there's that way too small waistband.

So, here's the plan. I'm not really thinking of this as a "refashioning a skirt" idea (though you could make an argument for that), but rather a "here are two 51 inch wide by 39-1/2 inch long pieces of fabric" idea. A dress with the skirt part already made and hemmed. Well, at least partially hemmed. I did notice a safety pin lurking in the hem area. First, I'll cut off the waistband and remove the back zipper (hand-picked, by the way). I'll figure out how much length I'll need for the front and back bodice pieces. Then I'll cut off the bottom part for the skirt. I'm thinking I'll pleat the skirt instead of just gathering.

For the yoke/sleeve combo, I've got my fingers crossed that this tulle I bought from Gorgeous Fabrics will work. (Mine has black dots, but I haven't taken a pic.)

I plan to underline the tulle with a nude silk organza, and hope it gives it enough body. It's kind of a meshy, soft tulle. The original pattern only lines the skirt. I'm going to attempt to line the bodice, and not line the skirt. Rather, I'm going to make a petticoat of sorts with the tulle peaking out the bottom, and possibly some stiffer tulle as well to give it a little poof.

And, I'm really hoping that this will actually happen. Life, as it so often does, has gotten a little messy at the moment. Now that the bodice is fitted though, I don't think the construction will take me that long. Oh, yeah, I still need to buy some black lining. There's that. And maybe buy a belt buckle. That's on Friday's agenda at the moment.